Arcadia
by fortitudo
Summary: Zero is discovered and awakened by Neo Arcadia, instead of the Resistance. An exploration of what could have transpired had the game's original events gone a bit differently.
1. Chapter 1

Retrieving the rumored "legend" from the depths of an abandoned laboratory had proven to be an almost all-consuming task. It was a race against time, or more specifically, against the rebel faction that had recently emerged; the Resistance. The Guardian of Wind had devoted most of his time, efforts, and resources and that of his fellow Guardians' to ensure the operation's success.

All of this, to ensure Neo Arcadia emerged victorious in the bid for what was likely history's most powerful weapon.

To his credit, it had paid off.

Upon receiving the news from Fefnir and not without his usual gusto, Harpuia and the rest of his unit had breathed a collective sigh of relief. Now, he had taken the next available opportunity to make his way to personally greet the newest addition to Neo Arcadia's ranks. Now that he actually had time to spare, he wasn't sure what he expected to see when he arrived; Master X had been very brief and to the point with his orders, and had neglected to actually describe the supposed Legend himself at all.  
But then again, the only thing his Master had ever needed to do was say the word, and the Guardians would set it into motion.

Phantom had apparently been in the same line of thought, and had been waiting for Harpuia just outside the Guardian of Wind's command centre. Clapping the taller Reploid on the shoulder, as best he could, the shorter Guardian flashed that rarely seen half-smile.

"You seem relieved." He said, with a hint of bemusement.

Any other Reploid would've rolled his eyes, perhaps, but Harpuia simply returned the smile."I believe that is what the humans call an understatement."  
If the operation had not gone as planned, the situation would have drastically changed for the worse. The Resistance had very little in its favor as it was now, but with something that was supposed to be as powerful as their Master's fabled partner, the tables would have most definitely turned had they managed to get their hands on it.

With Fefnir most likely, and no doubt impatiently, waiting for them at the medical bay, the only Guardian missing was Leviathan. Sure enough, the soft clack of her heels was not far off, and both Harpuia and Phantom slowed their pace to allow her to catch up. The female Guardian broke into a slight jog upon sighting the pair, and wasted no time in giving Harpuia a playful punch in the arm. "Good job, pretty boy!" She chuckled, grinning. The Guardian of Wind returned the favor with a nod and grin of his own, although it failed to compare to his sister's. "It was Fefnir who was actually in the field." He corrected. Leviathan made a noise of dismissal, and made a face resembling exasperation. "That's all well and good, but we all know Fefnir's no good at anything but beating things to a pulp." Harpuia refrained from commenting, but her jab at Fefnir's intelligence was a running joke between the two Guardians, with Fefnir returning the favor by calling her with nicknames like "princess," and "prissy." Phantom only snorted, opting to ignore their squabbles altogether, most of the time.

Usually she was more on the aloof and regal side of things, but the most recent headway had apparently lifted everyone's spirits, hers included. If Leviathan was this excited, Harpuia almost dreaded to see what Fefnir was like, a typically hard-to-handle personality even on the bad days.

Harpuia's instincts proved to be correct, for when the trio arrived, Fefnir quickly gave the Guardian of Wind a very animated nod accompanied by the usual grin before returning his gaze to the Reploid still in stasis. In any other situation, the Guardian probably would have made a spectacle congratulating his sibling on their success, but he'd immediately resumed his habit of excitedly bouncing on his toes in anticipation instead. He had also taken to pestering the nearby medbay workers while waiting for the rest of them to show up, if their looks of relief were anything to go by. If protocol would have allowed it, Harpuia suspected Fefnir would've already smashed his way through the glass separating Zero and himself and shaken him awake before the rest of the Guardians had left their posts. All of this considered, Fefnir was behaving himself.

Fefnir's outward actions seemed to speak for Leviathan as well, as she bounced from one foot to the other at a slower, albeit similar pace as the Guardian of Fire after bolting to the glass window alongside him. When Harpuia seemed to be taking his time giving the signal for the awakening process to begin, she huffed, visibly annoyed. "Would you hurry up already? He's been sleeping for what, a couple centuries? Waking up a few minutes ahead of schedule isn't going to kill him."

The capsule the legendary warrior had been placed in as a precautionary measure hid him entirely from view, and it was plain to see that everyone was curious, if not apprehensive about the new arrival's… physical state as it where, Leviathan especially. Personally, Harpuia was worried about what such a long period of suspended animation would do to one's memory, but that would have to wait until after the Reploid awoke. Fefnir seemed to be more concerned about whether or not the Reploid would be available for sparring matches, but both Harpuia and Phantom had quickly shut him down. It only dampened his mood momentarily however; he quickly joined Leviathan in chanting, "Go! Go! Go!" when Harpuia wasn't moving at their pace.

Slowly, mostly to annoy Leviathan and Fefnir and secondly because he was somewhat nervous himself, Harpuia gave the go-ahead to the medbay staff. Reploids and humans alike, they quickly went to work, both making sure the Reploid was stable and that the process was following proper procedure and pace. After a few minutes, and still no sign of a conscious Zero, a muffled thump caused Harpuia to turn. Leviathan had pressed her forehead against the glass, either in a display of exasperation or anger, he couldn't tell which, as she eyed the capsule impatiently.

"This is taking SO LONG." She practically wailed, and Harpuia was hard pressed to contain his laughter. Fefnir looked about is impatient as Leviathan, if not more, with Phantom being the most reserved and seemingly apathetic of the four.

A few tension-filled minutes later, with Fefnir and Leviathan taking turns impatiently broadcasting their displeasure with how long the process was taking, and finally the capsule's hatch opened. Not fast enough for the Guardians of Ice and Fire, however, as the two looked ready to burst through the medbay's doors and rip it clean off and nearly reached their goal, but they managed to control themselves momentarily after a scolding look from Harpuia.

Getting the green light from the head nurse was a different matter entirely however, as the two raced headlong to the capsule's entrance to greet the legendary Reploid, who looked just about as bewildered and confused by the sudden commotion as they looked excited. Harpuia and Phantom took their time, with Harpuia noting that Phantom seemed to perceive the recently awakened Reploid more as a potential threat than a comrade, but that would have to be addressed later.

For now, it was time to say hello.

* * *

_AN: OH BOY! My first multi-chapter endeavor. I've had the idea for this particular AU for a while now, but only recently decided to write it down. I don't really consider myself a writer, or a competent one for that matter, but I appreciate every review and favorite even though I sometimes have trouble responding to them all. _

_I hope you've enjoyed reading this as much as I enjoyed writing it, and with luck more is on it's way!_


	2. Chapter 2

Fefnir had seemingly taken it upon himself to be the first to greet Zero, as he'd practically shoved Leviathan out of the way to get to him first(albeit gently), earning himself a rather hard and discreet punch in the arm when she caught up to him. Zero, on the other hand, was more focused on discerning his current location, regarding Fefnir more like an obstacle in his field of vision than anything else. Extending his hand and then immediately deciding Zero was taking too long for his liking, Fefnir grabbed the other Reploid's hand and gave it a far too vigorous shake. Zero promptly ripped his hand from Fefnir's grasp after giving him a look that could only be described as contempt, but Fefnir didn't seem to notice.

"Hey! Nice to meet you, the name's Fefnir!"  
The grin on his face was the one reserved solely for Fefnir's fellow Guardians, and even then Harpuia had only seen it a handful of times. Zero stared at him for a few moments in contemplative silence, before nodding in reply.

He seemed to be on the verge of saying something before Leviathan nearly tackled Fefnir out of the way, not without muttering something that sounded like "Move, fatass!" under her breath. Drawing herself up to her full height, Leviathan was apparently bent on putting on her best performance for the legendary Reploid. Clearing her throat, and pointedly ignoring the scathing glare she was receiving from Fefnir he recovered, the Guardian of Ice introduced herself with no small measure of confidence. "Why hello there, Mr. Legend. I'm Leviathan, Guardian of Ice. The meat castle over there is the Guardian of Fire." She purred, hand on her hip. Fefnir wasn't one to take anything, especially insults, lying down and promptly and explosively shot back, "I am _not_ a meat castle!"  
Zero, to his credit, didn't seem as taken aback as he had with Fefnir, but even so looked like he wanted nothing more than to crawl back inside the capsule he had only just exited than be caught up in the two's arguing.

Taking the opportunity to swiftly intervene(much to Zero's apparent relief) Harpuia gently took the Reploid aside, but not before overhearing a very hushed "I told you he was cute!" from Leviathan, with only silence from Fefnir in response. With Zero eying him with what Harpuia eventually understood as expectancy, and Phantom making no effort to do anything but stare the other Reploid down with practiced neutrality, the Guardian of Wind took the opportunity speak the Legend face to face.

"You're probably tired of all these introductions, so instead I'll extend to you Neo Arcadia's warmest of welcomes." He paused momentarily, in case the legendary Reploid wanted to respond, but it was becoming more and more apparent that their leader's old partner was very keen on being as quiet as possible. "As I'm sure you've noticed," Motioning to his fellow Guardians as he spoke, Harpuia continued. "We are the Four Guardians of Neo Arcadia. We will be responsible for your rehabilitation, Zero, among other things." Said 'things' would have to be discussed later, depending on both Zero's mental and physical state throughout the process, but unloading everything onto the recently awakened Reploid would do nothing but complicate matters.

"Now, I have a few routine questions for you; firstly, do you remember anything?"  
It was mostly to quiet his worries, but also part of the routine checkup the medical crew would be doing anyways, but he wanted to 'hear it straight from the horse's mouth,' as the humans said. The shorter Reploid took quite a while to answer, clearly checking and triple checking his systems, which in turn did nothing but make Harpuia even more nervous. He had half a mind to physically shake the answer out of Zero himself before he_ finally_ responded. It was almost inaudible, with Fefnir and Leviathan's renewed bickering nearly drowning it out, but it was the one word Harpuia had dreaded to hear the most.

"No."

Zero paused, taking a moment to check his memory banks for perhaps the fourth time, before continuing. "Nothing."

His voice was surprisingly deep, a stark contrast to Master X's, whose tenor often times had to work to get people's attention, while Zero's demanded it. Everyone, save for Zero and possibly Phantom, was taken by surprise by the information, but Leviathan spoke for all of them. "Well… shit." Her comment did nothing to improve Zero's mood, and Harpuia shot her a look of disapproval before swiftly interjecting.

"That was to be expected, somewhat, with such a long time in stasis." Clearly trying and failing to make Zero feel better, at this point he was frantically grabbing at straws. "I'm sure it will come back in time."

Luckily, this seemed to do the trick, or rather as much as it could.

Trying to mentally pick himself up off the floor, and thankful at least now he knew what they were working with, Harpuia moved to usher the smaller Reploid towards the door. The medical staff could do their checkup routine later, for now, the main priority was to get Zero out of the room, most importantly the capsule. It would likely only remind him that he was technically "incomplete," and Harpuia made a mental note to promptly order to have it disposed of. Taking note of Phantom quickly and quietly exiting the room, Harpuia didn't have to guess at what his intentions were, although he _would _have to have a talk with the other Guardian about the meaning of hospitality. Most importantly, how it was impolite to trail their new comrade while another member of their ranks was giving them a tour of the city even if it was his job.

"We'll discuss that more later. For now, let's introduce you to your new home."

* * *

_A/N: oh no really bad endings ahhh! Oh man though, sorry for such a long wait! School's started for me, and the inspiration I had for this story decided to also fly out the window, but I got sick of waiting around for it to come back and made myself finally update ;; The third chapter will be posted as soon as I finish it, hopefully soon, and thank you for reading and also for the kind reviews!_


	3. Chapter 3

Zero's introduction into Neo Arcadia's upper ranks had gone as smoothly as Harpuia had hoped, memory loss aside. His condition was largely hid from the public, and with good reason, Zero supposed.

The much beloved Master X's long lost partner finally returning, only to remember absolutely nothing, was not a very positive headline. With the energy crisis, this would only further complicate manners.

Despite being on somewhat of a social lockdown, Zero found he was content with the company he had. Fefnir was... Rather boisterous at times, but overall, he found that the Guardian's fiery reputation was well deserved and(more or less) enjoyed his companionship. Much more inclined to be hands-on than Zero would've have liked, Fefnir's typical greetings were usually preceded or included some sort of slap on the back, which was at first something Zero strongly disliked, but it slowly but surely grew on him.

Leviathan on the other hand took some getting used to, with Zero preferring to stay silent through most of the exchanges, much to her amusement, but she was calmer and more inclined to leave Zero to his own devices than Guardian of Fire.

Since the first day, the warrior-type Reploid had seen very little of Phantom. And had he looked. The Zan'ei General only appeared when needed, and according to Harpuia, spent most of his time either gathering intelligence or advising Master X.

Harpuia, Zero noted, while being outwardly serious and stern with his fellow Guardians, was the most bookish, Phantom aside. The Guardian of Wind preferred to spend most if not all of his free time reading, and Zero more often than not joined him. He found the activity somewhat boring at first, but once he had discovered the utopia's rather vast library, it became a much more intriguing task. It didn't hurt to brush up on what he had missed the past century, and it might help him remember a few things, Harpuia had reminded him.

Master X on the other hand, was the one person Zero had yet to meet. For reasons he couldn't discern, the ruler of Neo Arcadia refused to see him. Harpuia was at a loss as well. Why wouldn't X, of all people, want to meet him?

At first, Zero had suspected it might due to the memory loss, but Harpuia quickly brushed it aside and simply said he was probably just busy. The red Reploid didn't press the subject; they would meet in time, he supposed.

Not long after, the missions began.

He was given a weapon, a beam saber of his own choosing, and was quickly put to work.

At first, they were simple; reconnaissance and scouting, designed to prepare him for the task ahead. That task being, according to Harpuia, to put down the Resistance once and for all. Eventually they progressed to small raids, carried out by both Zero and the Guardians. It was then that Zero began to inquire about the Resistance and it's motives.

"The Resistance," Harpuia had said, "is nothing but mavericks. They seek to destroy Neo Arcadia and are a threat to humanity." He had said it so matter-of-factly that Zero had half a mind to believe him. Something about the whole thing, however, continued to nag him but he couldn't quite place it.

Until more recently, and more often than not it was in response to Neo Arcadia's military actions, the Resistance had never actually launched an assault against Neo Arcadia itself. Instead, the rebel faction only raided small supply trains, and it was never enough to seriously impact the utopia's citizens. Nevertheless, the media and the Guardians alike heavily demonized the group of supposed mavericks, most it seemed at Master X's insistence.

Keeping these kinds of thoughts to himself, however, seemed to be the best bet. It would do him no good to insistently question and cause problems, especially so when he had little independence of his own. Without the Guardians assistance, he would most likely still be in stasis, or in the hands of the Resistance.

The only way to know for sure, he supposed, was to ask the Resistance themselves.

That day was fast approaching it seemed.

Zero learned of the mission a few days prior, in order to adequately prepare, and received more congratulations than he had thought possible. Apparently, it was an honor of some sort, to take down Neo Arcadia's enemy, but for the life of him, Zero couldn't figure out why.

After this was all over, he was unsure of what would happen, and a part of him didn't want to find out.

* * *

_A/N: Hello again! Sorry the updates have been so slow ;; School has been really kicking my butt, but chapter 4 will be on it's way soon. Critique and the like is always welcome!_


	4. Chapter 4

It was the day the operation was set to take place, with a briefing slotted to be conducted in the morning, and the Guardian of Fire was more than a little excited. Not that he enjoyed steamrolling his enemies exactly, but he was frankly quite tired of this fight. And that was saying something. The Resistance was about as hard to destroy as a moth with a flamethrower, but somehow or another they always managed to survive. How, Fefnir couldn't say, nor did he exactly care. It had been exciting, he would admit, but only at first. Now, all he wanted to do was get this mission done and over with, with(as he and the rest of the Guardians hoped) the Resistance finally being taken down.

But, then again, that was Zero's job this time.

Knocking with no attempt to be polite about it, Fefnir waited somewhat impatiently for the red Reploid to hurry up and open the door. He wasn't disappointed; the doors slide open mere seconds later, with the Legend himself eyeing Fefnir with what he thought was a mixture of suspicion and annoyance.

"I see you learned from last time," Fefnir chuckled. 'Last time,' Zero had either been sleeping or just plain not paying attention, but in any case, the ordeal involved the Guardian of Fire pressing his face against the glass of Zero's pod, and had ended with Zero being in a foul mood for the rest of the day and Fefnir discovering what the steel plating of the door felt like when swung at full force. Needless to say, he hadn't done it again, but he had neither forgotten or forgiven Zero for it either.

Zero was either ignoring him or simply had nothing to say on the matter, Fefnir could never tell, and instead changed the subject.

"What do you want?"

Fefnir sighed. Always so serious, like a certain fellow Guardian.

"Well, I don't want anything, really, but I'm here to tell you that there's going to be a briefing for today's mission… and to take you there." he replied. Zero, on the other hand, stared at him for a few seconds, before the doors shut again with a loud clank. It only earned the doors a swift agitated kick on Fefnir's behalf. Fefnir assumed the other Reploid was getting whatever it was that he needed, and proved to be correct, as the doors reopened a few minutes later.

"Are you all ready now? Have everything you need?" Fefnir quipped, in a mocking, maternal tone. Zero only blinked and lightly shoved him out of the way, taking a few steps before stopping. It took Fefnir a second to realize he probably didn't know where to go, but Zero would probably rather die than ask Fefnir of all people for directions. The two got along well enough, and most of the time they played off of each other's jokes, but today Zero seemed especially on edge. He usually was, at least a little, before missions, but today it was substantially more noticeable. Not that Fefnir could blame him, all things considered.

It had taken Fefnir ages to figure out the other's ticks and habits, and there were likely a few he would likely never know about, but the first thing that had caught his attention was how little Zero did.

Whether it was just that he was rusty or had never been very good at it in the first place, his face was almost always perfectly neutral, never betraying even the slightest hint of emotion. There were times when they had shone through, but only briefly, and it was more often than not heavily subdued. Initially, Fefnir had doubted he even possessed the ability to laugh, but had eventually been proven wrong. But, like everything else, it wasn't particularly noticeable, and Fefnir had at first mistaken it for a hum. Zero's sense of humor was also… unexpected. It was dry, and usually sarcastic as all hell, with Fefnir more often than not taking the comment seriously but nevertheless had found amusing once he got used to it.

Whirling around, in an overexaggerated, mock battle stance, Fefnir growled, "Do that again, little man, and I'll throw you into next Tuesday."

Zero made a face of mock disgust, only waving a hand in dismissal, as if to say, "I'd like to see you try." The red Reploid appeared to be on the verge of making some sort of sarcastic jab, but stopped short. The distinctive sound of Leviathan's heels had caught his attention, and both Reploids turned to meet her.

"Ahh," Leviathan said, "if it isn't Fefnir and Zero." Her long strides quickly closed the distance between them, taking her place between the two.

"Just the two boys I wanted to see, and you especially." She hummed, turning to face Zero. Zero chose to ignore her, for the most part, simply nodding. Noticing Fefnir's stance, her voice took on a slight motherly tone. "Are you really going to start throwing your weight around in here?" She gestured to the narrow hallway. Multiple rooms lined its walls, some empty and some not, but it went without saying that it wasn't a place to do any kind of roughhousing. Not leaving it up to Mr. Legend to say anything, Fefnir gave her the most vacant look he could pull off, and Zero snorted.

"Why yes, I was. It just seems like the perfect spot, don't you think?"

Leviathan huffed, and Zero decided he'd had enough of everyone's antics for today.

"Where are we going exactly?" He asked, in an effort to get the ball rolling.

"Oh, that's what I'm here for." Leviathan said, and Fefnir and Zero exchanged glances.

"So… both you and Fefnir came to make sure I didn't get lost," the smaller Reploid stated. This time, it was the two Guardians' turn to exchange a look.

"Well… yes, if you put it that way," Leviathan replied after a sigh. Fefnir refrained from commenting at all, instead finding the nearest wall's surface highly interesting.

Zero shook his head, but didn't seem all that put off by the idea. He had a penchant for getting lost in Neo Arcadia's halls, even if he knew exactly where he wanted to go.

"Let's get going, we don't want to keep Mr. Punctual waiting," the Guardian of Ice offered, and Fefnir and Zero followed her lead.

Once the trio had made their way to the briefing room, Harpuia welcomed them with a sterner glare than usual. They weren't late, but they had taken a rather long time, and by Harpuia's standards, a mosey didn't cut it.

"Now that everyone's here," Leviathan rolled her eyes, and Fefnir clicked his tongue, but Harpuia made a point to ignore them and solely addressed Zero. "I believe we have a few things to discuss."

What else of course, but the mission to wipe out the Resistance. Harpuia began pacing as he explained the specifics of the mission, as he often did. Whether it was nerves or just a habit he had picked up on from Master X, no one could really say but him.

While it was Zero's job to do the most important part, capture of the Resistance's leader, Fefnir and Leviathan were to provide support. In the form of an army and hacking expertise, respectively. Both Guardians would provide distractions for the main body of the Resistance's forces, while Zero would slip in undetected, or relatively so. In theory, it seemed simple enough, but there were almost always complications; as such, the red Reploid would be allowed to command a small unit of Pantheons. Issuing them orders wasn't particularily difficult, but Zero would need to be updated on the proper protocols and procedures. The way Harpuia had explained it, it was similar to entering commands into a personal computer. Simple, concise phrases, and the Pantheons would set to whatever task you wanted, if it was allowed by the Laws, of course.

With the briefing more or less concluded, Harpuia asked the usual: "Are there any questions?" No one had any to ask, and Harpuia seemed unsurprised. "Good," was all he said, and that seemed to be everyone's cue to leave. Not that they could go far; Leviathan and Fefnir went about giving orders to those under their command, and Zero seemed a little unsure of what to do with himself. Harpuia left the room entirely, presumeably to make preperations of his own.

Now, all that was left was to wait.

* * *

_A/N: SOON. _


End file.
